The Saturday Writing Quote — the habit of persistence

Get going, I’ve been telling you this month, but just as important: Don’t stop!

“People who want to write either do it or they don’t… my most important talent – or habit – was persistence. Without it, I would have given up writing long before I finished my first novel. It’s amazing what we can do if we simply refuse to give up.”

— Octavia E. Butler, American science fiction writer (1947-2006)

The Saturday Writing Quote — a month to get started

Get started. Get going. Pick up the pen or brush, the guitar or camera. Who cares if your first effort or your first hundred stink? Sentence by sentence, line by note by image, you’ll get better. You’ll connect with your tools and your subject, and most importantly, your heart and creative spirit.

The rest of this month, the quotes will focus on getting started.

“You’re going to write a lot fewer songs, fewer poems, fewer books if you sit around and wait for a bolt of lightning. I think you should put a pencil in your hand, put the guitar on your lap and get to work.”

— Musician and songwriter Jeff Tweedy, on NPR, Nov 11, 2018

Lilypad photo by my friend Brooke

 

The Saturday Writing Quote — on finding joy in the work

“In a way, regaining the joy in writing is nothing more complicated than getting out of your own life and taking a vacation in the world of your story. That’s not so hard. It only takes ten deep breaths. It’s as simple as a walk down to the harbor. It may not seem that there is time for that. If you feel so, let me ask you this: Is there anything more important to do with the next two minutes than to nurture your soul and dream your story’s dream?”

— Don Maass, literary agent, teacher, and writer, on Writer Unboxed, 9/5/18